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http://www.archive.org/details/clevelandthorofaOOclevrich 


From  the  personal  library  of 
L.    DEMI  NG    TILT  ON 


The  Cleveland  Thorofare  Plan 


.-•itt.ii>  AILftl 


m  5  # 


City  of  Cleveland 

City  Plan  Commission 

1921 


City  of  Cleveland 

W.  S.  FITZGERALD,  Mayor 


CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION 

O.  P.  Van  Sweringen,  Chairman  Wm.  G.  Mather 

Morris  A.  Black,  Vice  Chairman  F.  F.  Prentiss 

H.  M.  Farnsworth 


EX-OFFICIO  MEMBERS 

Wm.  B.  Woods,  Director  of  Law  Alex  Bernstein,  Director  of  Public  Service 

Dudley  S.  Blossom,  Director  of  Public  Welfare       Anton  B.  Sprosty,  Director  of  Public  Safety 
Clarence  Metcalf,  Director  of  Finance  Thomas  S.  Farrell,  Director  of  Public  Utilities 

F.  W.  Thomas,  Director  of  Parks  &  Public  Property 

Richard  Harburger,  Executive  Secretary 


CONSULTANTS 

Robert  H.  Whitten,  Special  City  Plan  Advisor 
Frank  R.  Walker,  General  City  Plan  Advisor 
Robert  Hoffman,  Commissioner  of  Engineering 


STAFF 

C.  E.  Conley,  Engineer  Harry  B.  Brainerd,  Architect 

A.  H.  C.  Shaw,  Engineer  Wm.  A.  Strong,  Landscape  Architect 

W.  P.  Wood,  Draftsman 


'  2-1 


THE  CLEVELAND  THOROFARE  PLAN 


The  thorofare  plan  herewith  submitted  has  been  prepared  by  the  advisors  of  the 
Commission,  Robert  H.  Whitten  and  Frank  R.  Walker,  tentatively  approved  by  the 
Commission  and  is  now  presented  to  the  public  for  its  study  and  criticism. 

The  plan  is  intended  to  constitute  a  fairly  complete  system  of  traffic  arteries 
for  the  area  within  the  present  limits  of  the  City  of  Cleveland.  The  term  thorofare 
as  here  used  includes  all  streets  that  form  the  main  framework  of  the  general  street 
plan.  The  thorofares  collect  the  traffic  of  the  local  streets  and  carry  it  to  all  parts 
of  the  city.  Local  streets  that  are  used  chiefly  for  immediate  access  to  the  resi- 
dences or  industries  of  a  small  area  are  not  included  in  the  plan.     Only  about  one- 

When  is  it  Cheapest  to  Widen  the  Street? 


1 


When  like  this?        or  this? 


or  this  ? 


-J    V 


9 

The  country  road  can  be 
widened  at  the  time  the  ad- 
jacent land  15  cut  up  into 
buildinq  lots  almost  without 
cost. 


■  (Q 


Failinq  this  a  buildinq  line 
may  be  established  that  will  se- 
cure its  eventual  widemnq  when 
the  residences  are  replaced  by 
stores. 


When   larqely    built    up 
with  expensive   commercial 
buildinqs  widemnq   often  be- 
comes prohibitively   expen- 
sive. 


quarter  of  the  970  miles  of  streets  in  Cleveland  are  included  in  the  present  thoro- 
fare plan. 

A  careful  study  has  been  made  of  each  thorofare  with  reference  to  its  ade- 
quacy to  handle  present  and  probable  future  traffic  and  its  relation  to  the  complete 
thorofare  plan.  As  a  result  specific  recommendations  and  plans  have  been  prepared 
showing  where  widenings  should  be  made,  where  corners  should  be  cut  back,  where 
over  or  under  crossings  should  be  constructed,  and  where  extensions  should  be  cut 
through. 

The  changes  proposed  by  the  plan  are  not  new  or  original.  They  are  for  the 
most  part  changes  that  in  the  past  seemed  obvious  and  logical  to  the  various  indi- 


viduals,  civic  associations  and  public  officials  who  have  from  time  to  time  considered 
these  matters.  Now,  however,  for  the  first  time,  they  are  sifted,  assorted  and  brought 
together  as  parts  of  a  complete  and  carefully  co-ordinated  plan.  Presented  in  this 
way  the'  importance  of  each  to  the  general  system  is  at  once  apparent. 

The  plan  submitted  is  by  no  means  ideal.  The  area  included  is  already  largely 
built  up  and  it  seemed  altogether  impractical  to  proceed  except  with  constant  regard 
to  the  expense  involved  and  the  danger  of  creating  burdens  in  excess  of  the  eco- 
nomic benefits  and  .in  excess  of  the  ability  of  the  city  to  finance.  The  plan,  how- 
ever, will  provide  with  reasonable  adequacy  for  traffic  needs  for  a  considerable 
period  of  years.  As  compared  with  most  other  big  cities,  Cleveland's  position  as 
regards  traffic  conditions  will  be  relatively  advantageous.  The  plan,  while  far  from 
ideal,  constitutes  a  great  improvement  and  its  substantial  achievement  is  well  worth 
striving  for.  v 

Street  Widening 

The  plan  provides  for  the  widening  of  98  thorofares  having  a  length  in  the  por- 
tions proposed  to  be  widened  of  about  190  miles. 

Existing  thorofares  have  to  a  very  large  extent  been  opened  and  improved 
without  regard  to  a  general  plan.  This  accounts  for  the  frequent  jogs  in  alignment, 
the  lack  of  adequate  connections  and  above  all  the  entirely  inadequate  widths  that 
are  so  general  over  the  major  portion  of  the  City.     Important  traffic  routes  have 

Comparative  Traffic  Efficiency  of  66  foot  and  66  foot  street 


i 
I 

i 


i 


i 


66 


:', 


I, 


■  l> 


II 
■  i 

ll 

■> 

M 
H 


-56  - 
66 


The  86  foot  thorofare  takes 
but  30%  more  land  than  the 
66  foot  thorofare  yet  it  is 
4 times  as  efficient. 

It  will  pass  twice  the  traffic 
at  2  or  3  times  the  average 
speed . 


been  opened  and  improved  apparently  as  purely  local  residence  streets.  Old  coun- 
try roads  have  been  built  up  at  their  original  widths  of  66,  60,  50  or  even  40  feet. 
Double  track  car  lines  have  been  placed  in  SO  foot  streets  with  no  provision  for  the 
widening  of  the  streets. 

A  large  proportion  of  the  street  railway  trackage  is  located  on  streets  and  road- 
ways of  inadequate  width.  In  order  to  provide  reasonable  freedom  and  speed  both 
for  street  cars  and  for  other  traffic  a  roadway  wide  enough  for  one  line  of  moving 
vehicles  on  either  side  of  the  car  tracks  in  addition  to  space  for  vehicles  standing 
at  the  curbs  is  absolutely  essential.  For  this  purpose  a  roadway  width  of  56  feet  is 
needed.     This  with  a  sidewalk  width  of  15  feet  gives  a  total  street  width  of  86  feet. 

The  plan  submitted  proposes  the  eventual  widening  to  a  minimum  width  of 
86  feet  of  most  of  the  important  thorofares  and  of  practically  all  of  the  thorofares 
on  which  street  railways  now  are  or  may  be  located.  All  such  thorofares  should 
be  widened  so  as  to  provide  for  two  lines  of  moving  vehicles  in  each  direction. 
Unless  this  is  done,  with  the  increase  in  traffic  and  the  increase  in  the  number  of 
standing  vehicles,  the  speed  of  all  vehicles  will  be  reduced  to  the  speed  of  the  slow- 
est. Automobiles  and  street  cars  will  be  compelled  to  trail  behind  the  slow  moving 
horse  drawn  vehicles.  A  thorofare  of  that  kind  is  very  unsatisfactory  for  passenger 
automobiles,  for  street  cars  and  for  motor  trucks. 

The  normal  development  for  a  car  line  street  is  retail  business.  Lorain  Avenue 
is  perhaps  typical  of  the  traffic  and  the  kind  of  business  development  that  will  come 
to  most  of  these  thorofares.  With  business  comes  the  increase  in  the  number  of 
vehicles  standing  at  the  curbs  that  makes  it  essential  to  have  a  clear  central  road- 
way width  for  two  lines  of  moving  vehicles  in  each  direction.  Unless  this  is  done 
the  speed  of  the  street  cars  will  be  reduced  to  the  speed  of  the  slowest  trucks,  and 
automobiles  will  be  compelled  to  trail  behind  the  cars.  Nothing  could  be  more 
inimical  to  the  future  prosperity  of  the  city  than  to  permit  these  main  arteries  of 
traffic  to  be  solidly  built  up  at  their  present  inadequate  widths. 

The  relation  between  traffic  congestion  and  street  car  operation  is  well  set 
forth  in  a  report  to  the  Council  by  Street  Railway  Commissioner  Fielder  Sanders, 
January  25th,  1917: 

"It  can  easily  be  seen  without  argument  that  the  down  town  streets  are  saturated  with  traf- 
fic— street  cars  and  vehicles.  The  street  car  traffic  has  been  so  delayed  by  this  great  excess  in 
vehicle  traffic  that  in  order  to  prevent  tie-ups  and  gaps  on  the  lines  it  has  been  necessary  to  in- 
crease the  running  time  on  several  of  the  lines  so  that  the  cars  may  remain  properly  spaced. 

"This  is  very  expensive  for  the  car  riders.  The  public  service  commission  of  Massachusetts 
stated  this  obvious  truth  in  the  following  language : 

'Economy  demands  the  largest  possible  car  mileage  in  proportion  to  car  hours  and  this  makes 
the  speed  at  which  cars  are  operated  very  important.  This  fact  is  generally  recognized  by  street 
railway  managers  at  the  present  time  and  upon  well  operated  roads  every  effort  is  made  to  increase 
the  average  speed.    The  better  the  speed,  also  as  a  rule,  the  greater  the  traffic.' 

"It  has  been  one  of  the  distinguishing  characteristics  of  the  Cleveland  Railway  Company 
that  it  has  operated  its  cars  very  fast.  It  has  the  highest  schedule  of  surface  railroads  in  the 
country  and  this  in  large  measure  has  not  only  made  service  attractive  but  has  made  also  three 
cent  fare  possible.  It  is  this  speed  and  cheapness  of  operation  also  which  has  so  far  made  five 
cent  rapid  transit  tube  operation  financially  impossible  in  Cleveland.  This  speed  is  now  breaking 
down  on  account  of  being  interferred  with  by  traffic,  the  system  is  slowing  up,  but  only  to  some 
slight  degree,  however,  away  from  the  congested  districts." 

It  is  only  by  giving  attention  to  the  widening  of  many  thorofares  that  the  pres- 
ent high  car  speed  outside  of  the  center  of  congestion  near  the  public  square  can  be 
long  maintained.    Unless  this  is  done  street  cars  on  many  important  arteries  will 

5 


be  compelled  to  crawl  along  behind  slow  moving  trucks.  It  will  be  impossible  to 
keep  the  trucks  off  the  tracks,  because  with  the  increase  in  the  number  of  standing- 
vehicles  at  the  curb  there  will  be  no  space  in  these  narrow  roadways  other  than  the 

Profit  and  Loss  in  Street  Widening 


Shortening  a  lot  10  feet 
reduces  value  as  follows : 


Widening  the  street  10  feet 
on  each  side : 


Street  66  feet  wide 


w///////y///M//MW//W/sv/////////. 


200' 

Lot 
0.6% 


VbO' 
Lot 
1.7% 


Lot 
3.% 


100" 

Lot 

4A% 


Street  66  feet  wide 


Increases 
Value  of  all  lots 
frbm  ,)6%toEOO% 


The  average  owner  can  give  the  land 
required  for  street  widening  and  reap 
10  fold  to  100  fold  profits  on  his  investment. 

tracks  in  which  the  trucks  can  move.  This  will  mean  increased  cost  of  street  rail- 
way operation  and  increased  fares  and  loss  of  time  to  the  car  riders.  It  will  also 
mean  continual  interruption  to  automobile  traffic  and  increased  trucking  costs. 

On  many  of  the  thorofares  that  are  listed  for  eventual  widening  the  buildings 
are  at  present  set  back  from  the  street  line.  There  is  no  urgent  need  for  their  im- 
mediate widening.  The  important  thing  is  to  insure  that  future  buildings,  stores 
or  apartments  shall  be  kept  back  from  the  present  street  line  a  sufficient  distance 
to  allow  for  a  future  widening.  The  widenings  proposed  would  in  many  cases  injure 
the  use  of  the  houses  for  residence  purposes  by  cutting  off  the  front  lawns  and 
bringing  the  houses  too  close  to  the  street.  The  use  of  many  of  these  streets  will, 
however,  gradually  change  from  private  dwellings  to  apartments  or  business  build- 
ings. When  this  time  comes  the  street  can  be  physically  widened  without  injury 
to  such  apartment  or  business  use.  In  the  meantime,  the  fixing  of  a  permanent 
building  line  back  of  the  present  street  line  will  serve  to  protect  the  existing  dwell- 
ings from  serious  depreciation  owing  to  the  possible  erection  of  an  apartment  house 


on  the  present  narrow  street  line  and  projecting  out  beyond  the  present  dwellings. 
And  when  traffic  has  so  increased  that  the  street  must  be  widened,  it  is  more  than 
likely  that  the  street  will  no  longer  be  desirable  for  private  residence  purposes  and 
the  private  dwellings  will  have  been  replaced  by  apartments  or  by  business  build- 
ings. Provision  for  future  widening  through  the  establishment  of  a  set  back  line 
can  therefore  be  made  while  the  future  traffic  thorofare  is  still  a  residence  street, 
with  advantage  to  all  owners,  and  when  the  time  comes  to  actually  widen  the  street 
to  meet  traffic  needs  this  too  will  usually  be  to  the  advantage  of  the  owners.  By 
thus  imposing  the  set  back  line  and  then  widening  the  street  at  the  very  time  that 
these  things  can  be  done  with  advantage  both  to  the  owners  a/id  the  City,  the 
widened  thorofare  can  be  secured  at  a  minimum  expense. 

Many  of  the  thorofares  listed  for  widening  are  already  in  the  transition  stage. 
The  former  residences  are  being  gradually  replaced  by  apartments  and  stores.  Most 
of  the  stores  and  some  of  the  apartments  are  being  placed  out  beyond  the  resi- 
dences on  the  street  line.  Now  is  the  time  to  stop  this  development  before  the  ex- 
ceptional example  becomes  the  rule.  Many  of  the  structures  already  built  out  to 
the  line  are  temporary  wood  buildings  or  taxpayers.  In  time  they  will  be  replaced 
and  then  if  in  the  meantime  other  buildings  have  been  kept  back  on  the  established 
line  the  street  can  be  widened  with  comparatively  slight  expense. 

Street  Extensions 

Thirty-seven  street  extensions  are  proposed,  having  an  aggregate  length  of  23 
miles. 

The  street  extensions  will  necessarily  be  more  expensive  than  the  widenings. 
Recommended  extensions  are  therefore  carefully  limited  to  the  connections  deemed 
necessary  to  secure  a  fairly  complete  thorofare  layout.  In  no  section  of  the  present 
city  should  thorofares  be  more  than  a  half  mile  apart.  Owing  to  existing  building 
development,  this  minimum  standard  has  not  been  attained  in  a  few  sections 
of  the  city.  Wherever  possible  without  too  great  cost  existing  streets  have  been 
connected  by  short  extensions  so  as  to  form  through  routes.  Many  of  these  ex- 
tensions if  not  provided  for  now  will  be  cut  through  in  later  years  at  enormously 
increased  expense. 

Central  Thorofares 

The  central  section  of  the  city  lying  between  Fulton  Road  on  the  west  and  E. 
105th  Street  on  the  east  and  lying  north  of  the  valleys  of  Walworth  Run.  the  Cuya- 
hoga River  and  Kingsbury  Run  will  embrace  the  principal  business  and  community 
center  of  the  Cleveland  metropolitan  area.  The  topography  of  the  city  is  such  that 
the  bulk  of  the  traffic  to,  from  and  through  this  business  and  community  center 
must  pass  in  a  generally  east  and  west  direction.  This  section  will  therefore  re- 
quire all  the  increased  east  and  west  traffic  capacity  that  it  is  now  practical  to  secure. 

In  all  large  cities  the  demand  is  for  more  routes  leading  into  and  through  the 
central  business  district.  In  Cleveland,  the  traffic  difficulties  are  in  large  measure 
due  to  the  reliance  on  a  few  main  thorofares  converging  at  or  near  the  public  square. 
The  remedy  lies  in  the  provision  of  more  thorofares  of  adequate  width  coming  from 
the  outskirts  of  the  city  into  and  through  the  central  business  section  and  out  to 
the  city  boundaries  on  the  opposite  side.  The  central  business  section  of  the  city 
should  have  an  approximately  rectangular  layout,  each  street  constituting  the  cen- 
tral portion  of  a  main  radial  thorofare. 

The  street  widenings  and  extensions  proposed  in  this  central  section  of  the 
city  will  take  care  of  the  estimated  increase  in  traffic  for  a  period  of  thirty  to  fifty 
years. 


TENTATIVE 

THORDFARE  PLAN 

CITY  OF  CLEVELAND 


DRAFT  OF  DELC.I7.HZ0 
SCALE. 


ONE  MILE 


CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION 

ROBERT    H.WHITTEN 
K  R.  WALKER 

C'TY  Plan  ADVI5CP3 
C.  E.  CON  LEY 


•  KEY- 

EXISTING  THOROFARES 
PROPOSED  WIDEN1NGS 
PROPOSED  EXTENSIONS 

UNDETERMINED  AREAS 


Central  Bridges 

Locations  for  the  construction  of  future  bridges  across  Cuyahoga  Valley  are 
recommended  as  follows : 

(1)  Old  Superior  Viaduct  to  be  connected  with  St.  Clair  Avenue  at  West  9th  Street. 

(2)  Proposed  Huron-Lorain  Bridge  to  be  constructed  with  a  connection  to  Eagle  Avenue  at 
Ontario  Street  to  meet  the  proposed  westerly  extension  of  Carnegie  Avenue. 

(3)  Additional  high  level  bridge  from  Huron  Road  and  Ontario  Street  to  Franklin  Avenue 
to  connect  a  great  through  route  made  up  of  Euclid  Avenue  and  Huron  Road  on  the 
Efest  Side  and  of  Franklin  Avenue  and  Madison  Avenue  on  the  West  Side. 

(4)  A  high  level  bridge  from  East  30th  Street  and  Pittsburg  Avenue  to  Jefferson  Avenue 
and  West  5th  Street.    This  will  provide  an  East-Side- West-Side  belt  line  route. 

The  construction  of  all  of  these  bridges  will  be  required  to  meet  traffic  demands 
within  thirty  to  fifty  years. 

Standard  Thorofare  Widths 

The  Following  standard  thorofare  widths  and  cross  sections  are  recommended: 

Street  Roadway  Sidewalk 

Class  A  thorofare 66  40-42  13-12 

Class  B  thorofare 86  55-56  15.5-15 

Class  C  thorofare 100  60  20 

Class  D  thorofare 120  76-80  22-20 

Class  E  thorofare 140  and  over 

The  66-foot  thorofare  is  undesirable  unless  traffic  is  light,  unless  the  number 
of  vehicles  standing  at  the  curl)  is  negligible,  unless  there  are  no  street  car  tracks, 
and  unless  the  traffic  using  the  thorofare  is  predominately  either  of  the  fast  or  the 
slow  type.  It  will  seldom  be  wise  to  apply  the  66-foot  standard  in  laying  out  a 
city  thorofare  in  as  yet  undeveloped  territory.  It  is,  however,  a  standard  that  it 
will  frequently  be  expedient  to  apply  in  replanning  the  thorofare  system  of  a  built 
up  area.  In  the  plan  submitted  the  66-foot  standard  is  applied  to  a  considerable 
number  of  narrow  thorofares  where  the  existing  development  seemed  to  make  it 
inadvisable  to  attempt  to  secure  a  more  adequate  width. 

The  86-foot  thorofare  with  a  56-foot  roadway  provides  for  two  lines  of  mov- 
ing vehicles  in  each  direction  in  addition  to  space  for  vehicles  standing  at  the  curbs. 
In  the  plan  submitted  the  86-foot  standard  is  applied  to  most  of  the  routes  recom- 
mended for  widening  or  extension.  It  is  the  minimum  width  that  seems  at  all  ade- 
quate for  any  but  minor  thorofares.  It  should  at  least  be  a  minimum  for  all  main 
thorofares  and  for  most  street  car  routes  and  for  all  routes  crossing  the  entire  length 
or  breadth  of  the  future  central  business  district. 

It  is  recommended  that  the  traffic  ordinance  be  amended  to  require  a  special 
license  for  any  vehicle  in  excess  of  7.5  feet  in  width. 

Over  and  Under  Crossings 

Various  methods  of  separating  grades  at  street  intersections  have  been  de- 
vised and  a  number  have  been  actually  applied.  Where  applied,  however,  it  has 
usually  been  to  meet  exceptional  demands  of  topography  or  traffic  and  not  to  solve 
the  problem  of  a  typical  busy  intersection.  A  separation  of  grades  is  comparatively 
simple  if  provided  for  at  the  time  the  streets  are  laid  out  and  the  grades  established. 

In  the  case  of  the  typical  busy  intersection  a  complete  separation  of  grades  is 
not  practicable.  The  intersecting  routes  cannot  be  completely  separated  as  in  the 
case  of  a  steam  railroad  and  a  highway.  Freedom  of  interchange  of  traffic  between 
the  two  intersecting  streets  must  be  retained.  The  most  that  can  be  done  is  to 
carry  the  through  traffic  of  one  of  the  streets  over  or  under  the  intersection.  The 
intersection  itself  will  still  be  complicated  by  the  interchange  traffic  of  both  streets 
and  by  the  pedestrian  traffic  of  both  streets. 

10 


In  the  extension  of  Carnegie  Avenue  it  is  recommended  that  an  over-crossing 
be  constructed  to  carry  Carnegie  Avenue  through  traffic  over  East  105th  Street. 
Over-crossings  are  also  recommended  for  eventual  construction  in  Superior  Avenue 
both  at  the  East  30th  Street  and  at  the  East  55th  Street  transfer  points.  The  width 
of  Superior  Avenue  (132  feet)  and  the  comparatively  undeveloped  condition  of  the 
street  frontage  affected  greatly  simplifies  the  construction  of  over-crossings  in  these 
locations. 


Standard  Widths  for  thorofares 


CLASS  A 


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CITY  OF  CLEVELAND 
CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION 


Robert  H.  Whitten 
F.R.Walker. 

CITY  PLAN  ADVISORS 


11 


Speedways 

In  city  railway  trarrsporation  the  elevated  road  and  subway  have  not  super- 
seded the  street  surface  railway  but  have  merely  supplemented  it.  The  evolution  of 
vehicular  traffic  may  be  somewhat  similar.  As  traffic  is  slowed  down  and  the  aver- 
age length  of  haul  increases  the  problem  of  providing  a  number  of  high  speed  routes 
to  carry  traffic  through  the  more  congested  areas  Will  become  very  urgent.  Unless 
such  routes  are  planned  long  in  advance  of  their  actual  need,  they  will  be  almost 
prohibitively  expensive  when  at  length  they  are  imperatively  required.  Cleveland's 

When  is  it  Cheapest  to  Extend  the  Street? 

■When  like  this?       or  this?  or  this? 


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5y  control  of  plattinq 
the  thorofare  can  be  ex- 
tended free  of  cost 


When  lots  are  sold  and 
dwellmqs  erected  the  cost 
becomes   burdensome 


When  smaii  dwellmqs  are 
replaced  by  hiqh  apartments  the 
cost  becomes  almost  prohibitive 


topography  is  favorable  to  the  development  of  a  number  of  speedways  radiating  from 
the  heart  of  the  city.  The  River  Valley  and  its  branching  ravines  furnish  possible 
locations  for  such  routes.  The  Lake  Front  also  may  be  used  for  this  purpose. 
These  possibilities  should  be  further  studied  in  connection  with  plans  for  terminal 
and  rapid  transit  development  and  in  connection  with  plans  for  Lake  Front  im- 
provement. 

A  plan  is  submitted  for  the  construction  of  a  three  mile  speedway  in  the  par- 
tially undeveloped  area  immediately  north  of  Euclid  Avenue  between  East  21st 
Street  and  East  Boulevard. 

The  Traffic  Problem 

Street  traffic  is  increasing  much  more  rapidly  than  population.  If  the  growth 
of  street  traffic  merely  kept  pace  with  the  growth  of  population  the  problem  of 
making  adequate  provision  for  the  future  would  be  sufficiently  difficult.    It  is  prob- 

12 


13 


able,  however,  that  the  street  burden  will  under  normal  conditions  increase  twice 
as  fast  as  population,  i.  e.,  while  population  is  doubling  the  street  traffic  will  be 
trebled. 

The  traffic  problem  is  chiefly  one  of  average  speed  and  not  of  the  number  of 
vehicles  it  is  physically  possible  to  move  through  the  streets.  Even  with  all  the 
interruption  due  to  cross  traffic  there  is  abundant  street  capacity  in  so  far  as  num- 
ber of  vehicles  that  it  is  possible  to  pass  through  the  streets  during  any  2  or  12 
hour  period  is  concerned.     All  the  traffic  offering  can  doubtless  be  taken  care  of — 


tis'-V  -4-—  18'-  io"- 
■  so'  ■ 


I. 


Present  80'  Width-  E.^  to  E.107st. 


Present  e>3'  Width  -  Public  Square  to  L\  bb  sr. 


^::::::;.  :.'.'.::■:.£} 


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Proposed  120'  Width-  l-^st  to  University  Circle.         Section  or  120'  Width  Showing  Arcade 

-  SCALE  • 

O  IO  to  »o  M  VJ 

Present  &>.  Proposed  Width  of  Euclid  Avenue.  • 


CITY  OF  CLEVELAND 
CITY  PLAN  COMMISSION  • 


ItOIMT     M     WHITTCH 
W.   R    WALKtB 

CITV  PLAN  ADVISODS 


the  only  question  is  with  what  delay  and  with  what  average  speed.  If  an  average 
speed  of  2  to  6  miles  an  hour  will  suffice,  there  is  no  traffic  problem  now  and  possibly 
never  will  be.  If  on  the  other  hand  an  average  speed  of  10  to  20  miles  is  demanded, 
the  traffic  problem  is  extremely  urgent  and  difficult. 

Extreme  congestion  means  not  only  that  street  car  service  is  disrupted  but  that 
all  trucking  and  commercial  traffic  is  slowed  down.  The  cost  of  trucking  is  a  much 
larger  factor  in  the  cost  of  most  goods  than  is  railroad  freight.  Many  products  are 
transferred  by  vehicle  through  city  streets  a  half  dozen  times  before  they  reach  the 
consumer.  If  through  street  congestion,  as  is  undoubtedly  true  in  parts  of  Chicago, 
New  York  and  London,  the  time  and  cost  of  trucking  goods  is  doubled,  the  toll  due 
to  congestion  is  certainly  enormous.  It  is  paid  in  part  by  the  public  in  higher  prices. 
It  also  places  a  serious  handicap  on  the  commerce  and  industry  of  the  city. 

Method  of  Carrying  Out  the  Plan 

The  plan  here  proposed  is  not  suggested  for  immediate  application  and  con- 
struction in  its  entirety.  The  plan  is  intended  rather  as  a  twenty  year  improve- 
ment program.     Most  of  the  street  extensions  proposed   should  be  made   soon  as 

14 


there  is  no  other  way  of  preventing  their  being  blocked  by  the  erection  of  expen- 
sive buildings.  The  widenings,  however,  can  for  the  mos't  part  be  made  gradually 
as  and  when  new  buildings  are  constructed  or  existing  buildings  are  reconstructed. 
In  this  way  the  widened  thorofare  can  eventually  be  secured  (probably  by  the  time 
it  is  imperatively  needed)  and  the  value  of  the  existing  buildings  will  be  saved. 

It  is  proposed  that  the  plan  shall  be  submitted  to  the  city  council  for  approval 
as  the  official  thorofare  plan  of  the  city. 

The  cost  of  carrying  out  the  plan  is  dependent  on  various  factors  not  clearly 
ascertainable  at  the  present  time.  The  cost,  however,  will  in  all  probability,  be  not 
less  than  $20,000,000,  not  including  the  cost  of  the  proposed  bridges  across  the  Cuya- 
hoga Valley.  A  financial  program  authorizing  the  expenditure  of  from  one  to  two 
millions  annually  should  be  adopted  in  order  that  the  most  urgent  features  of  the 
plan  may  be  carried  out  and  the  erection  of  any  buildings  that  would  seriously  in- 
terfere with  the  eventual  carrying  out  of  the  plan  prevented. 

The  Cost  of  Delay 

Chicago  is  now  spending  more  than  $80,000,000  in  the  widening,  extension  and 
improvement  of  a  few  main  thorofares.  Most  of  this  expense  would  have  been  saved 
if  Chicago  had,  when  it  was  the  size  that  Cleveland  now  is,  prepared  and  consist- 
ently adhered  to  a  thorofare  plan.  Cleveland  in  a  few  years  will  be  compelled  to 
expend  similar  amounts  for  improvements  that  can  now  be  provided  for  at  com- 
paratively trifling  cost. 

There  is  nothing  quite  so  permanent  and  difficult  to  change  materially  as  a 
city's  streets  after  they  have  once  been  solidly  built  up  with  business  buildings  or 
apartment  houses.  Buildings  have  come  and  gone  but  the  streets  of  central  Boston 
and  lower  Manhattan  retain  most  of  their  original  crooks  and  turns.  On  many  of 
the  streets  included  in  the  proposed  thorofare  plan  for  eventual  widening,  the  build- 
ings are  for  the  most  part  set  back  from  the  street  line.  Now  is  the  time  to  provide 
either  for  the  immediate  widening  of  these  thorofares  or  for  their  eventual  widen- 
ing as  and  when  new  buildings  are  constructed  or  the  present  residences  are  re- 
placed by  stores  and  apartment  houses.  Cleveland  is  building  up  and  spreading  out 
so  rapidly  that  every  year's  delay  in  the  adoption  and  enforcement  of  a  thorofare 
plan  will  mean  an  enormous  loss  to  the  future  city  both  in  money  outlay  and  in 
commercial  and  industrial  efficiency. 


15 


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